My Korean-American Life

  Roth IRA, Backdoor Roth & Mega Backdoor Roth Recently, a friend of mine (let’s call him David, 57 years old) said at a dinner that he contributed $8000 to Roth IRA without realizing his income above the threshold and had to pay the penalty. And he asked me for advice. As Roth IRA offers major benefits, such as Tax-free growth on investments, No required minimum distributions (RMDs) during the owner's lifetime, it can become a powerful long-term tax hedge for investors expecting to remain in high tax brackets—or those concerned about future tax increases. However, The IRS restricts direct Roth contributions for higher earners.* In case if you contribute to Roth despite your income above the threshold, it triggers a 6% excise tax per year it sits in the account. Here's a breakdown of David’s situation: Assuming he doesn’t have any balance in traditional IRA There are two ways to fix this, and the right one depends on timing.--- The penalty: The IRS charges a 6% excise t...

Starweed & Hairy Bittercress Stepping out into my garden in early March, I find these surging up lushly everywhere.  Stellaria media , common chickweed, or called as starweed (별꽃나물) in Korea is a widespread, low-growing annual plant often considered a weed, known for its mat-forming habit, small white flowers with 10 apparent petals, and edible leaves. Tender shoots are gathered in spring. Starweed gets its name from its delicate white flowers, which bloom in clusters against a backdrop of green leaves, resembling tiny stars. This plant thrives in sunny or semi-shaded fields. Hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) is a highly nutritious, edible wild winter annual weed packed with vitamin C, antioxidants, calcium, and magnesium. While most gardeners treat it as a pesky weed, it belongs to the Brassicaceae (Mustard) family , making it a cousin to arugula, watercress, and kale. 🌿 Health & Other Benefits Starweed is rich in phytosterols, tocopherols, triterpene saponins, flavon...

  generated by Google AI Today, March 3, 2026, is Jeongwol Daeboreum *—the first full moon of the lunar year. As I succeeded in making castella with rice flour instead of wheat and a pressure cooker instead of an oven, I decided to try my hand at siru-tteok . Instead of ogokbap , I cooked patjuk —the red bean porridge I’d missed making on Dongji (the winter solstice). But I had boiled far too many red beans, so I thought I might as well use them up and see if I could make the rice cake easily in a pressure cooker instead of a traditional steamer. After skimming a rough recipe, I set the pressure cooker to its all-purpose steam function and let it run for fifty minutes. When I took it out, the result looked like neither tteok nor bread. I cut off a slice and tasted it—it bore none of the flavor or texture of rice cake at all. Where, exactly, does the difference between the taste of tteok and the taste of bread come from? How is that distinctive chewiness of tteok born? I found mysel...

I loved rainy days when I was an elementary kid as the Castella my mom made was waiting for me. The smell came first—warm, sweet, faintly caramelized— before I opened the gate.  To me, Castella isn't just a sponge cake; it is the flavor of my mother’s love. Recently, yearning for that nostalgic sweetness, I checked a recipe and made it in my kitchen. A Journey Across the Sea: The History of Castella The story of Castella is one of cultural fusion. It originated from the Spanish region of Castile (hence the name Pão de Castela or "Bread of Castile") and was brought to Japan by Portuguese merchants in the 16th century. What makes it unique is its evolution. While Western sponge cakes often rely on butter, the traditional Castella is fat-free, —made simply from eggs, sugar, and flour—, refined over centuries into the dense, moist, and springy delicacy we adore today in East Asia. The Magic of Meringue The secret to a perfect Castella—one that doesn't collapse but stands...